Popverse's top stories of the day

• Peter Pan is finally growing up in new sequel called The Last Boy - but he is fighting it all the way
• Once Upon a Time's Lana Parrilla, Sean Maguire, & Rebecca Mader are coming to ECCC 2025!
• Star Wars' John Boyega is coming to Chicago's C2E2 2025

This week, Ketchup Entertainment acquired the distribution rights to Looney Tunes: The Day the Earth Blew Up. Per Deadline, there's no release date as of yet, but this is undeniably good news for  upon its screening at the 2024 Annecy International Animated Film Festival in June, The Day the Earth Blew Up was called "hilarious," heartfelt," and "truly a gem." But even if the film wasn't so lauded, its upcoming theatrical run is a triumph for fans of the new Looney Tunes or just animation in general...

And it may just mean the release of a movie Warner Bros. has been keeping from us.

Let me explain: The Day the Earth Blew Up is an animated alien-invasion comedy starring constant compadres Porky Pig and Daffy Duck. The film was originally greenlit as a Max original in 2021, but shortly thereafter, was thrown into the scrap heap of content write-offs - becoming one of the products Warner Bros. Discovery so controversially nixed during a company-wide restructuring. Joining The Day the Earth Blew Up in its rubbish bin was a movie called Coyote vs. Acme, a John Cena and Will Forte-starring legal comedy that would see Wile E. Coyote sue the company that was constantly sending him faulty products in his quest to catch the Roadrunner.

Like so many of the other cancelled projects, there was an outcry from angry fans that both Looney Tunes movies be released, along with accusations that Warner Bros. was purposefully withholding projects so that creators would not get paid in residuals. But now, with The Day the Earth Blew up fully resurrected and on its way to theaters, those angry fans have to wonder - could the same happen for Coyote vs. Acme?

Last we heard from Will Forte, the answer to that question is "no." "I know that a lot of you haven’t gotten a chance to see our movie" the MacGruber star wrote on social media, "And sadly, it’s a looking like you never will." And yet, the actor was making that statement in February of 2024, and readily admits that "when it comes to Hollywood business stuff, I don’t know shit about shit." Interesting to note here - those "Hollywood business" types gave the reasoning for Coyote vs. Acme's cancellation as Looney Tunes characters not being "all that important to modern audiences (per The Wrap)," an idea that this week's news seems to contradict.

The answer, like most everything else in Hollywood, will ultimately come down to money. If The Day the Earth Blew Up does well at the box office, then Warner Bros. would find itself with a reason to release its hold on Coyote vs. Acme, and its likelihood of coming to theaters shoots up drastically. I'll certainly be there watching Porky and Daffy kick alien ass on opening day, but until that time...

Th-th-th-th-that's all we know.

Want to know what's coming up next in pop culture? Check out Popverse's guides to:

• Upcoming movies
• Upcoming TV shows
• Upcoming comics
• Upcoming comic conventions

And if you're looking for specific franchises or genres, we've also got lists for the:

• Upcoming MCU
• Upcoming Star Wars
• Upcoming Star Trek
• Upcoming DC movies & TV

Finally, if you're a fan of superheroes and not specific to just Marvel or DC, we have overall guides to:

• Upcoming superhero movies
• Upcoming superhero TV shows (and new seasons)